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2017-11-29 09:47:28

SCG

Scana

$43.30

-0.22 (-0.51%)

, NEE

NextEra Energy

$157.42

-0.37 (-0.23%)

…09:47

11/29/17

11/29

09:47

11/29/17

09:47

Scana hires bank to consider possible sale, The State says

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster wants to sell state-owned utility Santee Cooper and his office is in talks with four out-of-state utilities - NextEra (NEE), Duke Energy (DUK), Southern Company (SO) and Dominion Energy (D) - about a potential sale, according to The State. Those same four would like to buy Scana and the utility has hired its own investment bank, Morgan Stanley, to consider a possible sale, sources also told the newspaper. Reference Link

As previously reported, Guggenheim upgraded Scana to Neutral from Sell and raised its price target to $45 from $43. Analyst Shahriar Pourreza said risk/reward is balanced and risks are largely reflected in valuation.

JPMorgan analyst Christopher Turnure reinstated coverage of NextEra Energy with an Overweight rating and $173 price target. The rating is unchanged from his prior coverage and the target is raised from $106. The analyst sees visible earnings growth through 2020.

Catch up on today's top five analyst initiations with this list compiled by The Fly: 1. AstraZeneca (AZN) initiated with an Outperform at BMO Capital. 2 aTyr Pharma (LIFE) initiated with an Overweight at Piper Jaffray. 3. Electronics for Imaging (EFII) reinstated with a Buy at Citi. 4. NextEra Energy (NEE) reinstated with an Overweight at JPMorgan. 5. Energy Recovery (ERII) initiated with an Overweight at Capital One. This list is just a portion of The Fly's analyst coverage. To see The Fly's full Street Research coverage, click here.

DUKDuke Energy

$88.69

-0.29 (-0.33%)

11/09/17

WOLF

11/09/17UPGRADEWOLFPeer Perform

Duke Energy upgraded to Peer Perform from Underperform at Wolfe Research

04/24/17

FBCO

04/24/17NO CHANGETarget $86FBCONeutral

Duke Energy price target raised to $86 from $81 at Credit Suisse

Credit Suisse analyst Michael Weinstein raised his price target for Duke Energy to $86 from $81 to reflect a higher base electric and gas P/E multiple within his sum of the parts valuation. The analyst reiterates a Neutral rating on the shares.

06/26/17

06/26/17UPGRADE

On The Fly: Top five analyst upgrades

Catch up on today's top five analyst upgrades with this list compiled by The Fly: 1. Coach (COH) upgraded to Buy from Neutral by Buckingham analyst Scott Krasik, who sees further upside based on expectations core margins can expand, Kate Spade accretion will exceed expectations, and thinks the company will make further additive acquisitions over the next few years. 2. Costco (COST) upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform by Raymond James analyst Budd Bugatch, who noted that the shares have pulled back approximately 13% since June 15 in reaction to Amazon's (AMZN) purchase of Whole Foods (WFM), which he views as providing a buying opportunity. 3. Pandora (P) upgraded to Sector Weight from Underweight at Pacific Crest by analyst Andy Hargreaves, who said the SiriusXM-appointed board members are likely to push for a moderated cash burn rate. The analyst believes lower cash burn, even at the expense of subscriber growth, would be a positive for Pandora. 4. UBS (UBS) upgraded to Overweight from Neutral by JPMorgan analyst Kian Abouhossein, who views the current valuation as attractive. 5. Goldman analyst Michael Lapides upgraded Duke Energy (DUK) to Buy and raised its price target to $85 from $82 saying relative valuation is compelling. This list is just a portion of The Fly's full analyst coverage. To see The Fly's full Street Research coverage, click here.

06/25/17

GSCO

06/25/17UPGRADETarget $85GSCOBuy

Duke Energy upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman Sachs

Goldman analyst Michael Lapides upgraded Duke Energy to Buy and raised its price target to $85 from $82 saying relative valuation is compelling. Lapides said Duke has taken various strategic actions that have shifted the company towards a stable regulatory infrastructure business and believes rate case filings and continued O&M cost management should mitigate North Caroline regulatory lag. The analyst also downgraded the Utilities sector to Cautious from Neutral saying valuations now appear stretched while earnings growth appears relatively normal.

SOSouthern Company

$51.14

-0.35 (-0.68%)

09/29/17

09/29/17UPGRADE

On The Fly: Top five analyst upgrades

Catch up on today's top five analyst upgrades with this list compiled by The Fly: 1. Southern Company (SO) upgraded to Outperform from Sector Perform at RBC Capital with analyst Shelby Tucker is increasingly convinced that the regulators are "committed to completing" the company's Vogtle project. 2. Conn's (CONN) upgraded to Outperform from Perform at Oppenheimer with analyst Brian Nagel saying the company's credit business, under new CEO Norm Miller, is "on a much more solid footing, and supportive of a return to expansion in retail." 3. Raytheon (RTN) upgraded to Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank with analyst Myles Walton saying Raytheon is the most exposed to missile defense trends. 4. USA Truck (USAK), J.B. Hunt (JBHT), and Heartland Express (HTLD) were upgraded to Buy from Hold at Stifel. 5. Zynerba (ZYNE) upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at Piper Jaffray analyst Charles Duncan saying without over-interpreting the results from this "modest open-label program," the data establish an "activity signal and tolerability profile that merits further placebo-controlled study." This list is just a portion of The Fly's full analyst coverage. To see The Fly's full Street Research coverage, click here.

09/29/17

RBCM

09/29/17UPGRADERBCMOutperform

Southern Company upgraded based on valuation, Vogtle outlook at RBC Capital

As noted earlier, RBC Capital upgraded Southern Company to Outperform from Sector Perform. After meeting with Georgia regulators, analyst Shelby Tucker is increasingly convinced that the regulators are "committed to completing" the company's Vogtle project. As a result, he believes that the stock is undervalued. Target $53.

09/29/17

RBCM

09/29/17UPGRADERBCMOutperform

Southern Company upgraded to Outperform from Sector Perform at RBC Capital

Janney Capital analyst Michael Gaugler noted that South Jersey Industries (SJI) shares fell over 9% after the company announced a deal to buy natural gas assets from Southern Co. (SO) for an effective price of $1.4B. However, he considers the prices agreed upon to be "very reasonable" in the current environment and he considers South Jersey's dividend not only safe but still likely to rise. The analyst, who thinks the market reaction was overdone, recommends investors in search of yield take positions in South Jersey and he keeps a Buy rating on the stock.

Goldman Sachs analyst Michael Lapides noted that Virginia's Supreme Court upheld the state's legislation extending its utility regulator's biennial rate reviews. This ruling likely means that Dominion's Virginia Power will not face full rate reviews or a rate case docket until at least 2022, which removes the overhang of risk that a review could lead to rate changes that present a headwind to Dominion's EPS, he tells investors. Lapides keeps a Neutral rating and $78 price target on Dominion shares.

After Connecticut lawmakers called a special session for June 30 in an attempt to pass a number of bills that were not taken up, Credit Suisse analyst Michael Weinstein said the there is a chance a "Millstone bill" intended to stabilize the profitability of Dominion's Millstone Power Station will be addressed. The analyst, who attributes Dominion's recent underperformance to diminishing prospects of Millstone legislation, said a failure to pass one this year would leave this as a potential positive catalyst next year. He keeps an Outperform rating on Dominion shares.

11/22/17

BOFA

11/22/17UPGRADETarget $87BOFABuy

Dominion upgraded to Buy from Neutral at BofA/Merrill

BofA/Merrill analyst Julien Dumoulin-Smith upgraded Dominion to Buy and raised its price target to $87 from $81 to reflect improved prospects for a tax reform resolution at VEPCO and expectations for improved execution. The analyst has increased confidence in Dominion's ability to accelerate the drop down for Covepoint project by 2020 rather than 2021, which should aid in hitting earnings targets and deleveraging.

11/22/17

11/22/17UPGRADE

On The Fly: Top five analyst upgrades

Catch up on today's top five analyst upgrades with this list compiled by The Fly: 1. Kellogg (K) upgraded to Buy from Hold at Argus with analyst David Coleman saying that despite the challenging operating environment, the company will benefit from diminishing currency headwinds and new product launches in the coming quarters. 2. Dominion (D) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at BofA/Merrill with analyst Julien Dumoulin-Smith citing improved prospects for a tax reform resolution at VEPCO and expectations for improved execution. 3. Pan American Silver (PAAS) upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse with analyst Robert Reynolds saying the 4% pullback in shares since the third quarter results provides an attractive valuation and entry point. 4. New Jersey Resources (NJR) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Janney Capital. 5. Terreno Realty (TRNO) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at National Securities. This list is just a portion of The Fly's full analyst coverage. To see The Fly's full Street Research coverage, click here.

AT&T Mobility has reached a tentative agreement with the Communications Workers of America in Mobility Orange contract negotiations. The four-year agreement, which will be submitted to the union's membership for a ratification vote in coming days, covers about 20,000 employees in 36 states and the District of Columbia - AT&T's Mobility Orange unit, which encompasses CWA Districts 1, 2-13, 4, 7 and 9.

Pfizer announced that the United States FDA has approved IXIFI, a chimeric human-murine monoclonal antibody against tumor necrosis factor, as a biosimilar to Remicade for all eligible indications of the reference product. The FDA has approved IXIFI as a treatment for patients with rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease, pediatric Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, and plaque psoriasis.

Western Alliance Bancorporation announced that during the first quarter of 2018 Robert Sarver will transition from Chairman and CEO to Executive Chairman. In conjunction with Sarver's change in role, Ken Vecchione will be promoted to Chief Executive Officer, Dale Gibbons to Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer, and James Haught to President and Chief Operating Officer, all effective April 1, 2018.

Aqua America announced that President and CEO Christopher H. Franklin has been elected chairman of the board, effective Jan. 1, 2018. Franklin became CEO in July 2015 and has served on the board of directors since October 2015. He succeeds Nicholas DeBenedictis, former CEO, who will continue to serve on the board as chairman emeritus.